CMP/AMO Seminar - Dr. Yuan Liu from North Carolina State University - Quantum Computing with Qubits and Oscillators

Speaker: Dr. Yuan Liu - North Carolina State University

Title: Quantum Computing with Qubits and Oscillators

Host: Prof. Zhigang Jiang 

Abstract: Quantum computing with discrete-variable (DV, qubit) hardware is rapidly approaching the scales required for computations beyond the reach of classical methods. Separately, platforms with native continuous-variable (CV, oscillator) systems have emerged as promising alternatives. In this talk, I will introduce a new hybrid CV-DV quantum computing paradigm that combines the strengths of both architectures, and highlight novel quantum algorithms and applications enabled by them. I will start with the qubit land, and present novel state preparation and dynamics simulation algorithms with application to quantum chemistry and beyond. This includes the first benchmarking study of a novel quantum embedding algorithm on real quantum hardware. I will then switch to hybrid CV-DV, and begin with a pedagogical overview of CV-DV processors, their instruction set architectures, and universal programmability. I will then present a variety of new hybrid CV-DV algorithms and applications, including the extension of quantum signal processing concepts to CV-DV systems and strategies to simulate systems of interacting spins, fermions, and bosons. These developments together open new frontiers for quantum simulation and computation for challenging problems across science and engineering. I will conclude with open questions and future opportunities.

Bio: Dr. Yuan Liu is an Assistant Professor and Quantum Computing & Information Science Faculty Fellow at North Carolina State University, with joint appointments in Electrical & Computer Engineering, Computer Science, and Physics. He leads the Laboratory for Quantum Engineering and Simulation Theory (QUEST Lab), a multidisciplinary group dedicated to advancing quantum information science for applications in computing, simulation, sensing, and beyond. Dr. Liu is a Scialog Fellow and recipient of the ECE Rising Star Award. Before joining NC State, he was a postdoctoral researcher at MIT. He earned his B.S. in Physics from Tsinghua University, a M.S. in Electrical Engineering, and a Ph.D. in Chemical Physics with the William R. Potter Prize from Brown University.